Love and War
by DarkRobin
Summary: This is the story of how the DMG became the DM's apprentice. Thats is all I am going to tell you. R&R!
1. Chapter 1

"Where is it? Where is it?" A teenage girl said as she walked through a forest, looking for something.

"I was told it would be out here, so where is it?" She looked to her left and saw something in the distance. "Is that it?" She said walking toward a brown house.

"This is it?" The girl said as she neared a fence that surrounded an old, broken down wooden house that had a danger sign in front of it. The girl was blonde and had green eyes. She had on a pair of faded blue jeans and a pink shirt and was carrying a rather large backpack on her back.

"Why would my parents send me to a run down shack? Well, that does seem like the type of they would do..." She said, eyeing the house. Suddenly, the door of the house opened and the girl took a few steps back. A boy emerged from the house.

He was wearing some of the strangest clothes the girl had ever seen. He wore weird purple boots and a purple robe. From his chest up, the robes seemed to get thicker and had red trimming and on his head was a slightly curved, pointed hat with red rings around it.

The girl stared at the boy's outrageous outfit as he walked toward her. When he got near the fence he stared at her for a second.

"Are you Mana?" He said. Judging from his voice, she could tell he was about one or two years older than she was.

"I was told a young man would meet me to take me to the place. Are you him?" The boy nodded and opened the gate.

"What is your name?"

"It's Mahaado. Now please, follow me." He said, walking back into the house.

Mana followed Mahaado into the house and saw it looked even worse on the inside. There was mold, there were broken, dirty pieces of wood on the floor, and many insects and small animals inside. There was also a strange violet diamond in the top-right corner.

"Step on the diamond." Mahaado said, gesturing toward it.

"O-ok…" Mana said as she walked toward it. She looked down at the diamond, then at Mahaado, who was tapping his foot on the ground.

"Go on…" He said.

Mana stepped onto the diamond and suddenly felt as though she was soaring in the air. She looked around and saw stars blinking brightly. Before she had a chance to take a good look at them, she fell face first onto a sand dune. She brushed the sand off of her face and spat out some sand as she got up. She looked around at her new surroundings and her eyes got wide.

"Whoa…"

She was now in a desert and in front of her was a huge white mansion. There was someone riding a purple horse, carrying a lance, circling the mansion. On a balcony, two identical girls were shooting blue and green sparks from their hands. At the very top of the mansion, there were three girls and a boy with wings flying around. One girl had red hair, one had yellow hair, one had blue hair and the boy had black hair. Before she could get a good look at everything, Mahaado appeared next to her.

"This mansion is beautiful, but what are we doing here?" Mana asked.

"Come inside. Everything will be explained to you." Mahaado and Mana walked up to the large golden doors of the mansion. Mahaado waved his right hand and the doors opened. Mana's eyes got even wider than before. The mansion was more beautiful on the inside. There were beautiful crystal chandeliers, plush red carpets, mysterious paintings, everything.

"Mother, father, Drake! I have returned with the girl." Mahaado yelled. Three people suddenly appeared in front of Mana and Mahaado. There was a young, tan man who looked to be about the same age as Mahaado and was wearing the same outfit as Mahaado, only his robes, boots and hat were red and black and his hair was white.

There was a woman who had on a red and green dress and a silly looking circular hat that made her eyes impossible to see. Then there was a man who looked like Mahaado, only much older. His robes were also purple and red and made him look much wider than he was and he was carrying a thick staff that had a sort of knobbly end on it.

"This is the girl, Mahaado?" The woman said.

"Yes, mother."

"Doesn't look like much…" The boy in red and white robes said.

"Drake, mind your manners!" The old man said. The man cleared his throat and said,

"My name is Sage. This is my wife Star. Welcome to our mansion. This is a place where we teach anyone who wants to know of their true powers. We can help you reach your full potential, that is if you so wish it."

"I was sent here by my parents. They said I should learn to defend myself in case I get involved." Mana said.

"Ah yes…Mahaado let Mana freshen up and Drake, get her room ready. Go!"

"Yes, father…" Drake and Mahaado said. Drake suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a small cloud of crimson smoke. Mahaado grabbed Mana's arm and they disappeared, too, leaving behind a small cloud of purple smoke.

"So, do you think she could be the one?" Sage said to Star.

"You always were awful at predicting the future. Do you have any idea what today is?" Sage glanced at Star.

"Ah yes, I remember…So it begins." Mahaado and Mana reappeared in a long hallway.

"This is as far as I can teleport. My father has placed several charms here that keep anyone from teleporting any closer." He said.

"Closer to what?"

"The guest bathrooms, of course. Now please, follow me." Mahaado led Mana down the hallway, which led to another, which led to another, which led to a tall, spiraling staircase.

"I wonder if my dad is becoming senile. He could have at least placed those charms farther away. I hate walking up these stairs." Mahaado said as he climbed the fifty-first step."

"You think you have it bad? I have to carry this heavy backpack. It feels like there's a baby elephant on my back." Mana said as she struggled to climb the steps after Mahaado.

"Oh, where are my manners?" Mahaado said as he turned around. He pointed his index finger at the backpack and it floated off of Mana's back and in front of Mahaado.

"Thanks." Mana said as she gave a sigh of relief. "So, is that Drake guy your brother?"

"Yes."

"He seems so cold and mean…"

"He just acts like a tough guy. He's really a nice guy, plus he's really reliable. Sure, he can be sort of moody and sometimes a jerk, but once you get to know him, he's not so bad."

"Hmm…Wait…" Mana said, now staring at her floating backpack.

"You're a magician?" Mana asked. Mahaado chuckled.

"We prefer to be called sorcerers. It's about time you figured it out. My codename is the Dark Magician." "So that means…this is like a school for magicians?"

"It's a school and home for many who want to learn of their powers or aren't accepted in society. You saw four winged people flying above the mansion, right?"

"Yeah."

"Those are the Harpie Lady Sisters and Harpie's Brother. They are some of the first ones to ever come to this school for help. Thanks to us, they have learned how to fly properly and use some of their other powers. They are also teachers for some of the other winged ones we have here."

"There are more like them?"

"No, but there are many other winged monsters that aren't really welcome with normal people."

"Cool. Hey, what do you have a codename for?" Mana said as they finally reached the guest bathrooms.

"Er…all that will be explained to you later. For now," Mahaado clapped three times and the jade doors opened. "You may freshen up. After you are done, clap your hands twice and someone will be sent to show you to your room. That is all for now. See ya." Mahaado bowed and teleported away.

Mana walked into the bathroom and the doors closed behind her. Without stopping to look at everything, Mana grabbed some vanilla-scented shampoo, a bar of soap and a soft towel and stepped into the shower.

"Why does Drake have to do everything half-assed?" Mahaado said to himself as he straightened out Mana's room. "He didn't put the bowl of fruit in here. He didn't conjure up the carpet. He didn't even put in a wardrobe closet. I know he remembers what mom told him. Sometimes I wonder if I'm really related to him."

"First sign of going mad: talking to yourself." Mahaado turned around to see Harpies' Brother gliding lazily around the room.

"What do you want, Hawk?"

"Just checkin' up on you. Say, who was the cute little hottie who went into the mansion with you?" That was…the one." Hawk flew over to Mahaado.

"You mean…?"

"Yes."

"Whoa, talented and cute, my kind of girl."

"Hey back off there, Wings…She's going to be my apprentice." "How do you know that?" Hawk said slyly.

"My dad has already chosen me to teach her."

"If she chooses to stay, that is. How do you know if she will stay?"

"We know something that she doesn't. If we tell her, she's going to be hunted. If she's going to be hunted, she's going to have to learn to defend herself. That's where I come in. Trust me on this. She's a girl and most girls are often very curious."

"Just remember, man," Hawk said as he flew out the window, "curiosity killed the Cat-Ear Tribe."

"It also killed the thing that killed them!" Mahaado called after him. But it was true. Mahaado wondered if telling Mana about what was happening was a really a good idea. What if she was killed before she could learn to control her powers? What if she ran away after she learned what she was getting into? Mahaado continued to ponder this as he finished up Mana's room.

30 Minutes Later

Mana turned off the water, grabbed a towel and stepped out of the shower. After drying herself off, she put on a white robe near her and walked over to the door.

"Now, Mahaado said all I have to do is clap twice, right?" Mana clapped twice and the doors opened, yet no one was there to show her to her room. Mahaado did say someone would be here. After a few seconds in which Mana looked down the hallway, she heard a sort of echoing coo.

Mana looked down the left side of the hallway and saw a small brown ball of fuzz with eyes hopping towards her. She was about to try to close the doors, but something stopped her so she just stood there, staring as the ball of fuzz hopped toward her.

When it reached her, it stared at her for a few seconds, then revealed its small green arms and legs as it gave her a small roll of parchment.

"Hi, my name is Kuriboh," Mana read aloud, "I am to be your personal servant. Please follow me to your room." The parchment suddenly disappeared as she finished reading. Kuriboh cooed and hopped off. Mana followed Kuriboh down even more hallways, occasionally looking out windows to see the Harpies or what seemed to be dragons flying about.

After what seemed like another hour of walking, Kuriboh stopped, pulled out a small scroll and gave it to Mana.

"Here is your room." Mana read aloud. She looked up and saw nothing but a white brick wall. She looked back down at the parchment and read, "If you look closely at the wall, there is a golden outlining on it. Touch that part and a door will be revealed. We hope you enjoy your room." The parchment disappeared once again as she finished reading and she looked at the wall again.

She stared at the wall for a moment and saw a thin gold line forming a large rectangle. She touched the wall inside the rectangle and a gold door appeared.

"Cool." Mana muttered as she opened the door and walked in, Kuriboh hopping in behind her.

She looked at the room. It was just as beautiful as every other room in the mansion.

"Hello." A voice suddenly said, making Mana jump. Mana had been so interested in looking at the room that she hadn't even noticed Mahaado was standing right next to the bed.

"Mahaado, don't scare me like that! So, this is my room."

"It could be, if you choose to stay. Before you say yes, I want you to know what it means. Please come sit down over here." Mahaado said, gesturing toward the bed.

"O-ok…" Mana said as she walked over to Mahaado and sat on the bed. Mahaado sat down next to her and Kuriboh hopped off somewhere.

"It started a millennia ago. Magicians and other creatures roamed freely. There was a war raging between a pharaoh and a stubborn high-priest. Nobody really won the war. There were only continuous battles. There were pointless deaths, and in the end the pharaoh sealed the powers in golden relics. The war didn't end there, however.

"Two separate worlds exist here. That purple diamond you stepped on to come here was something like a portal to this world. About the same thing happens in both worlds. The pharaoh's and the high-priest's reincarnations are alive in the other world and I am afraid the high-priest's reincarnation is as stubborn as he was. As the pharaoh and the high-priest are still at war in the other world, we are still at war in this world.

"We are only at a temporary ceasefire right now and I fear that fighting will break out once again soon. The seal that locked away the powers has been broken. There are seven of them, the relics I mean. Five of them have already been taken. If the last two should fall into the wrong hands, the world shall fall into darkness.

"The dark side has made several attempts to obtain the powers and every attempt has been foiled by us. However, this time we fear that anything we do will not be able to stop them. Along with building up their army and getting more powerful generals to lead it, they have somehow acquired one of the relics without us knowing. The relic is an item called the Millennium Eye and it was given to them by a grave robber, at least that is what our spies have told us.

"With the Eye they are easily more powerful than us. We might have the one thing that can stop them now. I'm sorry but I have to stop here because if I tell you this next part, you will have to learn to defend yourself because you will be hunted for learning this information. You will join us and fight in the war. Are you sure you wish to know this?"

Mana looked down at the floor. "My parents told me about this. They said if I chose to stay here, I will have to learn about my powers and join this."

"You knew about your powers?"

"Yes. Ever since I was a little girl I have been making strange things happen. Things have exploded whenever I felt angry. I have levitated, but whenever I noticed, I fell to the ground. My parents knew I had special powers and told me to come here to this place."

"Hmm…I figured by now you would know you're a sorceress. So, do you wish to stay here and learn to control your powers? Remember, you will have to stay here and fight in the war with us." Mana looked at Mahado.

"I…"

"Stop," Mahado said, standing up, "Do not answer now. Think about this overnight. I shall return in the morning. Kuriboh should be returning any moment with your dinner. Enjoy your dinner and I hope you sleep well." He bowed and teleported out of Mana's room. Mana stared at the spot he had been in, thinking about what he had said.

'Should I stay here?' She wondered. 'I would have to join a war. On the other hand, I would learn how to use my magic.'

'On the other hand, it means I may have to use the magic to kill people. On the other hand, I'd be able to stay in this mansion.' Mana lied back on her bed and continued to think about this. She didn't know how much time had really passed, but soon it felt like five hours had passed when Kuriboh hopped back into the room, carrying a large silver platter that had many different foods on it.

As it hopped toward Mana, it waved its free paw and a small table appeared in front of Mana. It set the platter on the table, hopped onto the bed next to Mana and held out a small scroll of paper for her. Mana took it and read aloud,

"We do hope you enjoy your dinner. If there is anything else you would like just tell Kuriboh and he shall get it for you." The parchment, instead of vanishing this time, flew out of her hands onto a clear spot on the platter, changed into a candle and lit itself.

"Cool." Mana said and looked down at the food.

They had made a delicious dinner for her. There was spaghetti, garlic bread and ice cold lemon tea. She savored the meal, as it was easily the best meal she ever had. As she ate, she saw Kuriboh looking up at her.

"What, do you want something to eat?" She asked. Kuriboh shook its head and held out a piece of parchment.

"Do you want anything else to eat or drink?" It said. "No, thanks, Kuriboh." She said, looking down at him. Kuriboh bowed and hopped away. Mana returned to her dinner. When she finished, the dishes and the table disappeared. Mana, instead of going to sleep, walked over to a chair in front of a fireplace and stared into the fire.

"Should I stay here?" She wondered aloud. She would have a better life. Her life began to flash before her eyes. A small, short, blonde girl suddenly disappeared as bunch of older girls carrying sticks ran toward her and reappeared behind them. A desk exploded as a girl angrily stared down at a book report which had a bad grade on it.

Mana soon began to grow sleepy so she got up, walked to her bed and laid down on it. It was very comfortable, she thought as she got under the blankets. She fell asleep almost instantly.

Unbeknownst to Mana, two figures suddenly appeared in her room. "You think she'll bite?" Drake asked, staring down at Mana.

"Dunno. I hope she will. We're gonna need her." Mahado said.

"How do we know she's the one the prophecy speaks of anyway?" Maahado looked at his brother.

"We don't, but she's the best match so far."

"You better pray to Ra that she is. We're running out of time. Look, I'm going to go get some sleep. We've got swordsmanship training in the morning."

"Ok, g'night, bro."

"Goodnight."

Drake teleported out of Mana's room. Mahaao stayed behind and looked down at Mana sleeping.

"Ra please let her be the one." He took one last look at her and teleported into his own room to settle down for a good sleep.

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Well, here is my new story. Yes, I am a fan of Yu-gi-oh! If anyone was confused about which monster I placed in here, here's a small list to help you out.

Mahaao: Dark Magician  
Drake: Arkana's Dark Magician  
Mana: Dark Magician Girl  
Sage: Dark Sage  
Star: Cosmo Queen  
Emerald and Sapphire: Gemini Elves  
Gaia: Gaia the Fierce Knight  
Hawk: Harpies Brother  
Ruby, Ginger and Diamond: Harpie Sisters

These are only the monsters that were in this chapter. Trust me, there are way more coming up. Until next time, R&R.


	2. Chapter 2

The rays of light hitting her eyes forced Mana to get up. Grumbling and yawning, she got up walked into her bathroom. She took a shower, brushed her teeth and put on a white t-shirt and white shorts. As she sat down in front of a vanity mirror, she noticed Kuriboh hopping around. Kuriboh hopped over to her and Mana held out her hand, expecting a note. However, she didn't receive a note. Kuriboh just cooed and somehow, Mana understood what he said. 

'Good morning, Mana. Breakfast is just about ready. Would you like me to show you where the dining room is?' Mana was surprised, but quickly got over it.

"Well, I am kind of hungry. Show me where it is." Mana said. Kuriboh cooed.

'Sure thing. Follow me.' Kuriboh hopped off and Mana followed.

'I'm glad you didn't freak out when you heard me talk.' He said.

"I have a feeling I'll have to get used to things like this. By the way, how are you talking?"

'I have telepathic and telekinetic powers. I'm just sending messages to your mind.'

"Cool."

'Very. It comes in handy at times. I can also read minds. Right now you're thinking of what we cook here for breakfast. Well, we have cereal, hot and cold, bacon, eggs, toast, hash browns, muff--Mana, you're drooling.' Mana quickly wiped the saliva off of her lip and quickly looked down at the ground.

'No need to be embarrassed, although I can't see why you'd be hungry after that dinner last night.'

"Well…heh…that really wasn't enough to fill me up." Mana blushed.

'What? We gave you twice the amount we usually give the students, and no one ever says they aren't full after one of those meals…except Mahaado and Drake, that is. You must eat as much as that blue eyed dragon.'

"There are dragons here?"

'Of course. We send our students out to battle and catch them as training. Once they're brought back here, the Lord of Dragons tames them, along with his two apprentices, Dragon Warrior and Dragon Piper, to be used for combat or labor.'

"Cool. Hey, what's that sound?"

'It's swords. We're nearing the sword training room. We train swordsman from all over here. Would you like to take a closer look?' Kuriboh asked as they neared the room.

"Sure." Kuriboh tapped the door with his paw and it opened. The two walked inside and looked around at the many people and monsters training. As she looked around, Mana saw what looked like an elf training with someone who's sword was leaving multicolored streaks in midair. Kuriboh informed her that the elf was the Celtic Guardian and the other person was Neo, The Magic Swordsman. Mana looked to the far right of the room and saw Mahaado training with Drake. The siblings furiously swung their wooden bokkens at each other. They countered each other's moves perfectly, neither of them ever hitting the other.

"Hey Mahaado." Drake whispered as they moved closer to each other.

"What?" Mahaado said, countering his brother's vicious downward slash.

"Isn't that Mana over there by the door?" Drake blocked his brother's counter slash. Mahaado back flipped twice, avoiding Drake's sweep kick and sneaking a peek at the door. He immediately charged at Drake once he landed and locked them into a sword struggle.

"Yeah, so?" He said, straining to push Drake back.

"What do you say we give her a little show?" Drake said, matching Mahaado's strength.

"But we haven't practiced it yet. We could burn out our magic."

"But we could increase our speed and strength and impress her."

"I like the way you think." They leaped back from each other and threw their shirts off. Mana nearly fainted when she saw how well built they were.

'Oh Ra, they are so hot! They are so built for magicians. Muscular arms, huge chest, abs of steel. I wonder if…'

'Down, girl.' Kuriboh said telepathically to Mana.

The siblings continued their sparring at an even faster pace. A magical aura built up around the boys so they just looked like purple and crimson blurs colliding for a few seconds, breaking up and repeating. Some of the training pupils stopped their training to watch them.

"Mahado, Drake, halt!" Cried Sage as he walked over to them.

"You both have improved greatly, but now it is time for you test. If you hit me, you both pass and move on to the final course of swordsmanship training. Both of you, come at me!" Mana wondered how an old man could defend himself against two boys who could move as fast as light.

Mahado's and Drake's auras enlarged. They both charged at their father and swung furiously. The old man, moving at an incredibly fast speed, summoned his staff and effortlessly blocked their attacks. After a few seconds, the brothers realized there was no way they would hit their father like this and leapt back.

"Drake, Quintuple After-Image Double Team!" Mahado yelled. The two boys and their auras disappeared and ten images appeared in random places around Sage; five were of Mahado and five were of Drake.

"Ready? Go!" Drake yelled. All ten images charged at Sage. The ancient wizard blocked six of the fake teens, and the last two faded away as they touched him. Sage spun around, hoping to catch his sons in mid-attack, but they weren't behind him. He looked around, but they weren't anywhere in the room.

"Mahado, Drake, stop hiding and face me!"

"We're not hiding." Both boys' voices rang out through the room. "We're right by you." Drake suddenly appeared on the left side of Sage and slashed ferociously. The older wizard blocked the attack, but stumbled back. Mahado appeared behind him and tapped him on his head with his wooden bokken.

"We win." He said.

"Go Mahado! Go Drake!" Mana cheered The spectating students cheered with her. Mahado looked over at the door and saw Mana jumping up and down, cheering for him and his heart leapt into his throat. When the cheering had subsided, Sage looked down at his sons and smiled.

"Congratulations. You both have passed the test. You are finally at the last training level. You will begin training with the Magic Swordsman and the Celtic Guardian.

"You know, you could just call me by my real name; Koric!" The Celtic Guardian yelled.

"And why don't you call me Neo? We're not in a battle right now!"

"You keep forgetting that elves hear very well." Mahaado said.

"Anyway," Sage growled, "You shall begin learning how to utilize your magic in conjunction with your swordsmanship."

"Some reward for passing." Drake said.

"Quit complaining. You want to keep getting hit with bokkens?"

"You know we haven't hit each other in weeks. We've just been repeating the same lessons because you always mess up!"

"I've never messed up a test! You just never attacked in sync with me!"

"Whatever. Anyway, doesn't this mean we can take the rest of this session off?" Drake asked.

"Of course, you may go Drake." Sage said.

"Great, I'm out of here." Drake vanished his bokken, and walked out of the room, pausing only to say hi to Mana.

Mahaado smiled and shook his head as he watched his brother. He vanished his bokken and started toward the door, hoping to get back to his room and soon as possible to take a shower before his next training session when he spotted a brown fuzzy ball jumping up and down.

"Kuriboh's here. That must mean that…" He looked to the side of Kuriboh and saw Mana, who was still cheering for him.

"Mana, what are you doing here?" He said, walking towards her. Mana tried desperately to keep her eyes on Mahaado's face and not his chest.

"Um, I just wanted to see what was going on." Mahaado summoned his shirt to him; it zoomed across the room to his outstretched hand.

"This is the sword training room." He said, pulling his shirt on. Mana frowned a little.

"We have some of the best swordsmen in the world training here. There's Koric," The Celtic Guardian waved at Mana from the other side of the room.

"Neo," The Magic Swordsman waved,

"And Masaki." Mahaado pointed to the southwest corner of the room where Sage was talking to a person that was wearing a kimono.

"This is a physical training room you shall be in if you choose to stay here."

"Looks like a rough class." Mana said, watching Neo and Koric spar against several students at once. It looked as though the two were not having any trouble blocking every attack and counter them with painful-looking attacks of their own.

"It is…I can still feel some of the blows from when I was training earlier. Drake does not go easy on anyone. Well anyway, I'm going down to breakfast now. Would you like to come with me?"

"Sure. You don't mind if I go with him, do you Kuriboh?" Mana asked, looking down to Kuriboh. Kuriboh shook his head and hopped off.

"Let's go." Mahaado walked out of the room, Mana following him.

"You know, you and Drake are really different to be brothers. I thought you two would act the same."

"Yeah, me and Drake are like exact opposites when it comes to our behavior. Drake is more of a no nonsense, straight to the point guy. I'm more laid back and relaxed, I try to enjoy myself as much as I can."

"Funny how that happens sometimes, huh?"

"Yeah…So how are you enjoying the mansion so far?"

"I don't know of a word to describe how cool this mansion is." Mahaado smiled.

"Well, looks like we're getting close to the dining room," Mahaado said as they neared the bottom of a long set of stairs, "You're about to see many strange looking people, but all of them are pretty nice so you don't have to worry."

"I promise I won't freak out or anything."

"That's what they all say." Mahaado and Mana walked into the dining room. Mana froze as she looked around at the many strange looking people and monsters talking and eating like nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Mana saw the two girls that were shooting blue and green sparks off of a balcony sitting together. She noticed that they had blue and green marks on their faces. She looked quickly around the room as she followed Mahaado. She saw a man wearing a necklace of large teeth she quickly guessed were dragon teeth. To his left, the four winged people she had saw the day before were tossing pieces of steak and bacon out of the window where it was caught by a dragon.

"Don't you think we spoil that dragon too much?" She heard one person say. As Mana looked around, she noticed that certain groups of people sat together. People who looked like sorcerers sat at one table. The strong, warrior type people sat at another table.

"Yeah, about that, we have to sit with other people that have the same abilities as us. There are certain exceptions, such as the Amazons and the Dragon Fighters." Mahaado said, gesturing at two smaller tables near a corner of the room.

Mana saw buff, tan women sitting at one table, talking in low, slightly masculine voices. At an adjacent table, she saw a young man with a horn sticking out of the top of his head and another that was wearing all light blue clothes.

"Also some beast people live here." Mahaado gestured at yet another table near the center of the room. Mana saw all sorts of animal-like people sitting at it. There was a short beaver in deep conversation with a tall panther warrior.

"So, where do I sit? With the sorcerers?" Mana said, still looking at all the different people eating, talking and laughing.

"Well normally, my dad would cast a spell that would show us what you are, but I think it would be ok if I did it this time." Mahaado stuck his right arm out and slowly closed his hand. When his hand was almost completely balled up, an emerald green staff appeared in it. The staff had light green rings at the bottom and top of it and at the top of the staff was what looked like a design based on Mahaado's hat, only cut in half. Mana caught a glimpse of a yellow orb, slightly glowing in the middle of the staff.

"Hold out your hands." He said. Mana held both of her hands in front of Mahaado.

"Revelius." Mahaado muttered, tapping both of Mana's hands lightly with his staff. Mana felt a warm surge of power flow from her navel and to her hands. She gave a short shriek as blue, green, and pink sparks shot from her fingertips. The sparks shot up into the air, turned into butterflies, and flew around the room a bit before gliding out of the windows. A few people clapped and laughed at the little light show. Mahaado smiled at her.

"I guess that means you're a sorceress. I hope dad doesn't get mad about that. Anyway, let's go find a seat." Mahaado and Mana found two empty spots near the middle of the mage table. They sat adjacent to each other.

"Dig in." Mahaado said, grabbing a large plate of bacon and eggs. Mana quickly grabbed a plate and piled some of everything on her plate and grabbed a fork. Mahaado stared at her for a few seconds before laughing.

"What's so funny, Mahaado?" Said Drake in his normal cold, low voice, sitting next to Mahaado.

"Check out her plate." Drake glanced at Mana's plate and chuckled.

"You eat more than most of the guys here. How do you stay so slim?" Said Drake, grabbing a plate of bacon and eggs, his voice much warmer.

"I guess I just have high metabolism or something. I don't work out and I don't diet." Said Mana, pouring syrup on her pancakes and sausages.

"Apparently." Said Drake. The brothers laughed.

"Drake, why are you suddenly acting so nice around Mana?" Mahaado said with a slight hint of anger in his voice. He finished off his bacon and eggs and put a stack of pancakes on his plate. Drake blushed as he also stacked pancakes onto his plate.

"Well…we need to be polite to our guests, don't we?" He said, trying to revert to his normal cold voice tone. He and Mahaado simultaneously grabbed three sausage patties and two hash browns. Mana watched them, astonished.

"How are you two doing that?" She asked.

"Doing what? Oh, you mean the in-sync movement?" They said in unison.

"Y-yeah."

"Well, we're close and we have a special bond. We can read each other's minds, feel the other's emotions, and sometimes, we even mentally fuse so our movement and speech is in unison."

"That's--"

"Freaky? Very. Anyway, we can stop it anytime we want, but we've decided to give you a little demo of what we can do. Ready, bro? Let's go." Mahaado and Drake stood up, walked into an open space on the floor and faced Mana.

"Hey, check it out, sis. They're about to do another demo. Go spread the word." Said Hawk.

"If we're going," Said Ginger, grabbing Hawk.

"You're coming with us." Ruby and Diamond grabbed Hawk and flew up above everyone else.

"Ready girls?" Diamond said.

"OK!" Ginger and Ruby said, trying their best to sound like cheerleaders.

"I said ready girls." Diamond said viciously to Hawk.

"Man, the things I do to keep you all happy…OK! Ra, that was gay." The four siblings inhaled for ten seconds, then let out ear piercing screeches. The many people that were dining and talking quickly covered their ears and looked up at the Harpies.

"Now that we have your attention," Said Diamond

"We'd like you all to direct your it to the main entrance where Mahaado and Drake are about to give another performance," Said Ruby

"What will they do this time? Who knows?" Said Ginger

"So pull up a seat, relax your feet, and enjoy the show." Hawk said unenthusiastically.

"You didn't sound very cheerful, dear brother." Said Diamond.

"You need to sound more cheerful if you're going to be a cheerleader." Said Ruby ominously.

"Who said I wanted to be a cheerleader?" Hawk muttered.

"WE DID!" The Harpy Girls shouted. Growling, they summoned whips and began chasing Hawk. Hawk quickly flew out of the window with the girls in hot pursuit. The room was filled with laughter as the many people watched Hawk get chased from the crystal-clear windows.

Once the laughter died down, everyone directed their attention to the front of the room where Mahaado and Drake had just begun their show. They began with a simple 1-2 punch followed by a roundhouse kick. With their legs still in the air, the back flipped and landed upside down on their hands with one leg still out. They spun around five times before partially finishing their back flip, but keeping their legs in the air in sort of a push-up position.

They spun their legs around to their front and held their bodies up with their hands. They spun their legs around, doing a break dancing-like move and vaulted into the air. The brothers somersaulted in midair and landed facing each other.

"There they go again." Said a woman sitting across from Mana. Mana looked over and saw Star looking back at her, smiling.

"When did you get here?" Mana asked.

"We've been here for quite some time now." Said another voice behind Mana. She looked over he shoulder and saw Sage looking down at her with a Mahaado-like smile. Mana smiled back at him and looked back at Mahaado and Drake, who had just acquired staffs and were now moving as if they were in slow motion.

Simultaneously, they spun their staffs over their heads. Mahaado brought his staff down to Drake's head, but Drake brought his up, blocking Mahaado's, and thrust it at him. Mahaado grabbed Drake's staff and pulled it out of his grip. Moving normally now, Drake pointed his palm at Mahaado and shot a green spell at him.

Mahaado made an X with the staves in his hands, hoping to use them alone to block the spell. Once the spell hit the staves, they transformed into large snakes and bit Mahaado in his neck. Everyone watching gasped as his body slumped lifelessly to the ground.

"Mahaado!" Mana yelled as she ran over to Mahaado's body. She knelt down and attempted to turn his body over. As soon as she turned him over, his body melted away, as did the snake.

"What the?" Mana said.

"You should've known that we weren't in any real danger." Mahaado's voice echoed throughout the room. Drake sank into the shadows while everybody's attention was diverted.

"But since you've entered our stage, we've decided to have a little fun with you." Drake said, an ominous tone in his voice.

"Fun? What do you mean, fun?" Mana asked.

"Watch." Mahaado said from the window. Before Mana could even turn her head to look at hi, Mahaado had jumped over to a nearby wall, launched off of it to an adjacent wall, and up to the ceiling directly above Mana. He quickly casted a spell to make his feet stick to the ceiling.

"Mana." Drake and Mahaado said. Mana was so shocked at seeing Mahaado above her that she didn't even notice a certain white-haired figure rising up out of her shadow behind her. Drake tapped Mana on her shoulder and smiled evilly as she looked at him.

"Boo." Mana instinctively elbowed Drake in his gut, grabbed his arm, and threw him over her shoulder into a wall. Everybody laughe as Drake hit the wall head first and glared at Mana angrily.

"Did she just…?" Star said, amazed at what she saw.

"Yes. Sage said happily.

"Impressive, but this is where it ends, Mana." Mahaado ceased his spell so he began falling headfirst toward Mana. Not knowing what she was doing, Mana threw her arms up over her head in an X position.

"Don't hurt me!" She shouted. A large, pink, transparent, glass-like triangular shield formed around her. Mahaado smirked and quickly teleported out of the air. He reappeared behind Mana and attempted to punch her, but the shield stopped his fist. The cocky smirk was replaced by a look of shock as he quickly teleported around her, attempting to hit her everywhere, but none of the attacks breached her shield. He sighed as he ceased his attacks and teleported to her front.

"Well, we surrender. ("Speak for yourself." Grumbled Drake. "I could've broken that shield.")" The roo was filled with cheers as Mana dropped her arms, dispelling the shield and Mahaado and Drake lifted her arms in victory. The boys lifted Mana onto their shoulders and around the room.

"She used an impenetrable shield spell even though she knows no magic." Said Star.

"Yes…this is very interesting. She shall need to be trained vigorously so we can know the full extent of her power." Replied Sage.

"But there is not much time left."

"You forget, there is a way to make more time."

"But that would mean that we would have to awaken it! It's uncontrollable!"

"Uncontrollable with our current power."

"The keyword there is 'current,' my dear. Let us speak no more of this now. Our children are approaching." Mana had high-fived what seemed like everybody in the room before she arrived at her seat again.

"Mana, good show!" Sage said as Mana hopped off of the boys' shoulders and sat down next to Star.

"Very impressive, my dear." Said Star.

"Thanks. Um…you two are very experienced with spells and magic, right?" Mana said to Sage and Star.

"Of course." Said Sage.

"Well, can you tell me something? When Mahaado was falling towards me, I threw my hands up over me and this pink shield appeared around me. I don't know any magic, so how did I do that?"

"That's very simple, my dear. You see," Star waved her hand and a large screen appeared behind her. On the screen was a stick figure covering its head.

"The sorcerer or sorceress has to visualize themselves being protected and if the will is strong enough, a shield will appear. The stronger the will, the stronger the shield." On the screen, a large, spiked ball was moving towards the stick figure. The figure pushed its arms out toward the ball and large words appeared over it saying 'DON'T COME NEAR ME!' A wall erected in front of the stick figure, stopping the spiked ball.

"Will all the spells I'm going to learn be that simple?" Mana asked in between stuffing her face with pancakes.

"That makes it sound like you want to stay here." Sage said. Mana gave an enormous swallow.

"That's because I do." She said as she smiled cutely. Drake and Mahaado blushed lightly.

'YES!' They thought simultaneously.

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Well, here's the second chapter. See if you can figure out the duel monsters I was describing in this chapter. There are quite a few of them. Well, until next time, FF people. R&R!


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